BRAUN,G. / HOGENBERG, F. - Brunn Vulgo Brinn Marchionatus Moraviae Civitas insignis.

Fine view of Brno seen from the southeast. TRANSLATION OF CAPTION: Brunn, in the vernacular Brno, eminent city in the Margravate of Moravia.

COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "Brno (in Latin Bruna, in Bohemian Brno) is the most distinguished city in Moravia after the episcopal see of Olomouc and has more beautiful, grand and richly decorated buildings and houses than the other towns. It is impossible to say how old this city is, but we know that it cannot be new for many reasons, in particular the castle, which resembles the old Franconian style of architecture. Today the provincial diets are normally held here. Recently the Moravian Estates acknowledged and paid homage to His Serene Highness Archduke Ferdinand here after he had been elected and crowned king of Bohemia."

Brno is seen from the southeast, from an only slightly elevated viewpoint on the far side of the River Svratka. The city wall is fortified with an extraordinary number of towers, behind which can be seen many churches. Dominant on the right is the spire of St James's church (N), which dates from the 14th to the 16th century. On the left the castle stands high above the city, on top of the Spilberk Hill. It was founded in the 13th century, and was the residence of the Margraves of Moravia (F) from the 14th century onwards. The cathedral of SS Peter and Paul, with its remarkable high saddleback roof, can be seen to the left of this, and to the right the tower of the Gothic town hall (H). The city is located in a favorable position, at the foot of the Spilberk Hill and at the confluence of the Svratka and the Svitava. It was first recorded in a document in the late 11th century. In the 12th/13th centuries Germans and Walloons settled here. In 1243 Brno was granted a municipal charter and a number of special privileges. In 1642 Brno replaced Olomouc as the capital of Moravia, and today it is the second-largest city in the Czech Republic after Prague. (Taschen)
Frans Hogenberg (1535 Mechelen - Cologne 1590) was a copper engraver and etcher. Georg Braun (1541 - Cologne - 1622) was a geographer and publisher. Both edited the first comprehensive and systematically designed atlas with town views and plans from all over the world. The collection 'Civitates Orbis Terrarum' was published from 1572 until 1618 and ultimately 6 volumes contained more than 500 copper engravings together with a huge amount of textural information